10/31/2014

Nottingham's probably best known for its infamous sheriff, but next year it'll have another claim to fame when a museum dedicated to gaming opens in the city. The National Videogame Arcade, said to be "the world's first cultural centre for gaming,"...

08/01/2014

Apple has officially taken ownership of Beats, and is welcoming them to the company with a small section of the Apple website. The words "Welcome to the Family" are followed by a paragraph stating Apple's excitement on bringing Beats into the fold, and looking forward to the future. From the Apple.com:

Today we are excited to officially welcome Beats Music and Beats Electronics to the Apple family. Music has always held a special place in our hearts, and we're thrilled to join forces with a group of people who love it as much as we do. Beats cofounders Jimmy Iovine and Dr. Dre have created beautiful products that have helped millions of people deepen their connection to music. We're delighted to be working with the team to elevate that experience even further.

And we can't wait to hear what's next.

Additionally, Vivendi announced today that it's Universal Music Group division had sold its remaining stake in Beats to Apple. The stake was worth about 13% of Beats, and was sold for $404 million.

What do you hope to see from Apple's acquisition of Beats? Let us know below in the comments.

04/14/2014

$100 million apartments aren't the norm in NYC, but with "vertical mansions" bubbling up all over, it's only a matter of time. This triplex, which the Wall Street Journaldescribes as "the city's most expensive apartment," is the latest contender.

12/04/2013

Dedicated tablet app looks just like the phone equivalent

British satellite broadcaster BSkyB has launched a dedicated tablet version of its Sky Go app, which allows subscribers to stream live TV and on-demand content to their Android devices. Sky says the app, like its smartphone counterpart, also gives customers access to more than 800 movies and a library of "hundreds" of entertainment shows and kids' content.

The launch of an official tablet app follows the gradual rollout of the Sky Go smartphone app over the past year — that app is available for a selection of popular Android devices sold in the UK. However the design of Sky Go for Android hasn't changed markedly in the tablet version — in fact it's almost identical to the phone version, leaving a lot of dead space on a 7-inch screen.

Sky Go for tablets is available now on Google Play for free, though you'll need a Sky subscription to use it. The app is compatible with "the majority of Android tablets that are 7 inches or larger and running Android 4.0 or later," according to the Play Store listing.

11/25/2013

Arguably the most notable characteristic of the iPhone 5s is the TouchID fingerprint sensor, which lets you unlock your phone and authorize app purchases simply by resting a pre-authenticated fingertip on the home button. It turns out, however, that Apple might've had plans for the technology that go far beyond just that. According to a patent application filed with the World International Property Organization, the Cupertino company may use TouchID's sensor technology to transform the Home button into a trackpad, similar to the ones on BlackBerry's older line of Curve handhelds. Indeed, the patent filing describes how users could navigate the phone by "revolving" or "twisting" their fingerprint on the button's sensor. Additionally, the sensor could measure the length of time and amount of pressure that is placed on it, which might lend to more interesting use-cases in apps or games.

What's even more intriguing, however, is that the document goes on to describe how the entire display can be used to read your fingerprints. This sounds like a crazy idea at first, but if implemented, the phone would then know exactly which finger of which hand is on the screen. This could lead to certain actions mapped to specific digits -- perhaps a long-press of your index finger could launch Maps, while a pinch of your pinky and thumb could open up Messages, for example. A few diagrams from the patent application show how screen-wide fingerprint recognition could be used for playing a piano or touch-typing on the virtual keyboard. If you're concerned that this could lead to serious battery drain, the patent even addresses that, stating that the phone would be smart enough to recognize when it's in moments of fingerprint recognition (i.e. "enhanced sensitivity") or when it's normal everyday use, otherwise known as "reduced sensitivity."

Further, it seems that enhanced sensitivity could just be restricted to small screen areas so that only certain apps -- like banking or email perhaps -- would be cloaked in that extra layer of protection. Of course, just because such functionality is filed away in a patent application doesn't mean we'll see this in real life. However, taken with the promise of Apple's recent acquisition, we'll admit we're very interested to see how the iPhone 6 will turn out. Those interested in patent minutiae can go ahead and peruse the rather lengthy 612-page document in the link below.

11/21/2013

The answer to designing ships that are both fast and stable has traditionally been to make the vessels as narrow as possible (to reduce drag) and sit them lower in the water (to reduce the buffeting effects of plowing through waves). But US Navy's M80 Stiletto is not your typical ship.

11/18/2013

Hydrogen fuel cells have been helping astronauts for nearly half a century already, so it's about time they became small enough -- and cheap enough -- to be of use to everyone else. That's exactly what Intelligent Energy claims to have achieved with its the latest fuel cell system, called the "Upp." At 500 grams and with a retail price of $199, it's not meant to compete with regular lithium ion battery packs -- in fact, the Upp behaves very differently.

For a start, you don't need to charge it. You just slap on a hydrogen cartridge and it's ready instantaneously. One cartridge yields around five charges for a smartphone, with each charge taking no longer than a mains USB charger would. When you're running low, an accompanying app either triggers the delivery of a new cartridge (perhaps by courier, if you've signed up to that sort of service) or directs you to the nearest store so you can exchange it. Unlike some other personal fuel cells we've seen, the Upp is a finished product that is ready for sale: the version we tried is ruggedly built and designed to work in the high temperatures of sub-Saharan Africa, where it'll initially be sold by mobile operators to customers in areas with unreliable electricity infrastructure. Check out our hands-on video to see it in action.

11/15/2013

A Pataxo Indian celebrates after his tribe defeated their competitors in a tug of war competition during the 12th Indigenous Games in Cuiaba, Brazil, Thursday, Nov. 14, 2013. More than 1,500 participants from 48 Brazilian tribes, as well as from more than a dozen other nations, descended this week on Cuiaba, the capital of Mato Grosso state, for the games that end Saturday. All participants will earn "medals" carved from wood, seeds and other natural items. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

A Pataxo Indian celebrates after his tribe defeated their competitors in a tug of war competition during the 12th Indigenous Games in Cuiaba, Brazil, Thursday, Nov. 14, 2013. More than 1,500 participants from 48 Brazilian tribes, as well as from more than a dozen other nations, descended this week on Cuiaba, the capital of Mato Grosso state, for the games that end Saturday. All participants will earn "medals" carved from wood, seeds and other natural items. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Bororo Indians perform a traditional ritual during the 12th Indigenous Games in Cuiaba, Brazil, Thursday, Nov. 14, 2013. More than 1,500 participants from 48 Brazilian tribes, as well as from more than a dozen other nations, descended this week on Cuiaba, the capital of Mato Grosso state, for the games that end Saturday. All participants will earn "medals" carved from wood, seeds and other natural items. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

A Rikbaktsa Indian watches the bow and arrow competition during the indigenous games in Cuiaba, Brazil, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2013. Around 1,600 Indians from 48 tribes are celebrating Brazil's indigenous cultures during the 12th edition of the Games of the Indigenous People, which runs until Nov. 16. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Indians dance during the indigenous games in Cuiaba, Brazil, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2013. Around 1,600 Indians from 48 tribes are celebrating Brazil's indigenous cultures during the 12th edition of the Games of the Indigenous People, which runs until Nov. 16. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Pataxo Indians celebrate as they watch one of their tribe members compete during the indigenous games in Cuiaba, Brazil, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2013. Around 1,600 Indians from 48 tribes are celebrating Brazil's indigenous cultures during the 12th edition of the Games of the Indigenous People, which runs until Nov. 16. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

CUIABA, Brazil (AP) — Body paint in place of uniforms. Bare feet instead of high-tech shoes. And a loose notion of competition that assigns little value to winning.

Welcome to the 12th Indigenous Games being held in Brazil's Amazon region, a cultural as much as athletic event that many are calling a "holistic" alternative to the big sporting extravaganzas Brazil will host in the next few years, the World Cup in 2014 and the Olympics two years later.

"We're not looking to crown champions or find great athletes," said Carlos Terena, organizer of the games, who like many indigenous Brazilians uses his tribe's name as his surname. "This isn't about competition, it's about celebration. Competition is more a thing for the Western world anyway."

More than 1,500 participants from 48 Brazilian tribes, as well as from more than a dozen other nations, descended this week on Cuiaba, the capital of Mato Grosso state, for the games that end Saturday. All participants will earn "medals" carved from wood, seeds and other natural items.

The more traditional tribal sports are carried out as exhibitions rather than competitions.

A crowd favorite is a wild tree-trunk relay race, with nine or more stout runners sprinting about 550 yards (500 meters) around a red-dirt arena, taking turns carrying a 220-pound (100-kilo) chunk of tree over their shoulders. Just getting to the finish line is considered victory.

Another sport called "xikunahity" resembles soccer, but with players crawling along the ground, only permitted to use their heads to push the ball forward. Several tribes have exhibited their own traditional forms of fighting, most resembling wrestling or judo.

Other events test the real-life skills of indigenous peoples, like archery, with bare-chested participants confidently carrying simple long bows, putting their toes along a line of long palm leaves laid down on the earth. About 40 yards away sits their target, the large drawn figure of a smiling fish leaping from the water, with most points scored for drilling the arrow right into its eye.

"This is the fourth time I'm participating in these games and for me they represent a cultural revival more than anything," said Yakari Kuikuro, who lives on the Xingu river in the Amazon and is part of his tribe's tug-of-war team. "Many of my family members stopped painting their bodies, they no longer dance in the villages. When I come here, I see pure Indians, with body paint, dancing together. It's important for others to see this and take it back to their villages."

Chief Willie Littlechild of the Cree Nation, a former member of Canada's Parliament, said attending the games was "truly a blessing, to see that such a rich culture exists with indigenous peoples around the world."

For the non-indigenous people in attendance, Littlechild said he hoped the games allowed them "to join us in a celebration of life, to join us in our holistic approach to wellness, to the physical, the mental, cultural and spiritual well-being of humans."

The games are held on a 17-acre (7-hectare) chunk of park, with large, white plastic tents dotting the land, each holding tables full of traditional crafts, like small pottery figures, wooden bowls, woven cloth and delicately carved musical instruments meant to mimic the songs of jungle birds.

Other tables hold the seeds of dozens of types of edible plants. Food security is one of the main themes of this year's event, with tribes from all corners of Brazil encouraged to trade seeds and take unknown varieties back to their villages.

Amelia Reina Montero, from the Nahua tribe of Mexico who was making her first trip to Brazil, succinctly summed up the prevailing mood of the gathering, saying it offered the rare chance for tribes from the Americas, often with limited contact to the outside world, to interact and learn from one another.

"Despite that fact that our languages are different, that are skin varies, we're uniting here with one heart," she said. "That's the Indian way."

11/12/2013

Washington’s political class fundamentally misunderstands the role of politics and government in American society. They act as if government is the central force in American life and that its decisions guide the course of the nation. In historical reality, societal trends embrace new technology and the deep currents of public opinion lead the way. Government follows along a decade or two behind.

A quick review of our nation’s history shows that the first 200 years were characterized by changing technology and expectations moving us to a more centralized nation.

In the transportation realm, we moved from horses to canals to railroads during the 19th century. Then things really took off in the 20th century with the introduction of cars and planes.

Communications saw a similar pattern. When the country was founded, the fastest way to send a message was to find the fastest horse. Then, during the 1840s, the amazing technological breakthrough of the telegraph allowed people to communicate almost instantly. It’s hard for us today to appreciate the significance of that change and before people got used to it, the telephone changed everything once again.

By the 1960s and ’70s, centralization of communications was as powerful as it has ever been. There were just three national television networks, and they attracted 90 percent of the TV audience. Those same networks provided news for radio as well. In print, the Associated Press and United Press International provided just about all the national and international news read by the American public.

The trend towards centralization was everywhere. Rather than small businesses serving a local community, big corporations made their appearance. Oil, steel and railroad companies operated on a scale never before seen. The Sears catalog became a fixture in millions of homes and trains delivered the exact same products on the exact same terms to millions of distant households.

Government, of course, played a role in all of this. Sometimes it helped move things forward, and sometimes it was an obstacle to progress. But government never drove the process. Society changed and government adapted.

As society became more centralized, so did the government. Politicians were happy to ride the wave of societal trends as it brought them more power and money.

But the trends changed starting in the 1970s with the launch of cable television networks. That gave individuals more choices in the 1980s, and the Internet expanded those choices in the 1990s. Now we’ve reached a level of personalization powered by more than 100 million smartphones. The culture of individual choice and customization is so strong that no two of these smartphones are alike. We have different apps, music and more.

Over the past 30 years, as society has moved away from centralization, the political class has resisted. Government has grown ever more centralized. In fact, the federal government today directly controls a far larger chunk of the nation’s economy than it did just a generation or two ago.

That disconnect exists partly because politics and government always lag behind. It’s also partly because politicians are not thrilled with riding the new wave that disperses power away from the political class.

The disconnect cannot continue. Sooner or later, the politicians will concede and the government will catch up.

Simply put, a one-size-fits-all central government cannot survive in the iPad era.

11/08/2013

Republican candidate Ken Cuccinelli didn’t lose women so much as single women. He won a majority of the votes of married women. One fascinating crosstab from race showed that Cuccinelli actually did better with married women (51-42%) than with married men (50-44%).